BabylonBabylon (𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠KAN4.DIĜIR.RAKI Akkadian: Bābili(m);
Aramaic: בבל, Babel; Arabic: بَابِل‎, Bābil; Hebrew:
בָּבֶל‎, Bavel; Classical Syriac: ܒܒܠ‎, Bāwēl) was a
key kingdom in ancient
MesopotamiaMesopotamia from the 18th to 6th centuries BC.
The city was built on the
EuphratesEuphrates river and divided in equal parts
along its left and right banks, with steep embankments to contain the
river's seasonal floods.
BabylonBabylon was originally a small
AkkadianAkkadian town
dating from the period of the
AkkadianAkkadian Empire c. 2300 BC.
The town became part of a small independent city-state with the rise
of the First
AmoriteAmorite Babylonian Dynasty in the nineteenth century BC.
After the
AmoriteAmorite king
HammurabiHammurabi created a short-lived empire in the
18th century BC, he built
BabylonBabylon up into a major city and declared
himself its king, and southern
MesopotamiaMesopotamia became known as Babylonia
and
BabylonBabylon eclipsed
NippurNippur as its holy city. The empire waned under
Hammurabi's son
Samsu-ilunaSamsu-iluna and
BabylonBabylon spent long periods under
Assyrian, Kassite and Elamite domination. After being destroyed and
then rebuilt by the Assyrians,
BabylonBabylon became the capital of the short
lived
Neo-Babylonian EmpireNeo-Babylonian Empire from 609 to 539 BC. The Hanging
Gardens of
BabylonBabylon was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World,
although a number of scholars believe these were actually in the
Assyrian capital of Nineveh. After the fall of the Neo-Babylonian
Empire, the city came under the rule of the Achaemenid, Seleucid,
Parthian, Roman, and Sassanid empires.
It has been estimated that
BabylonBabylon was the largest city in the world
from c. 1770 – c. 1670 BC, and again between
c. 612 – c. 320 BC. It was perhaps the first city to
reach a population above 200,000.[2] Estimates for the maximum extent
of its area range from 890[3] to 900 hectares (2,200 acres).[4]
The remains of the city are in present-day Hillah, Babil Governorate,
Iraq, about 85 kilometres (53 mi) south of Baghdad, comprising a
large tell of broken mud-brick buildings and debris.
The main sources of information about Babylon—excavation of the site
itself, references in cuneiform texts found elsewhere in Mesopotamia,
references in the Bible, descriptions in classical writing (especially
by Herodotus), and second-hand descriptions (citing the work of
Ctesias and Berossus)—present an incomplete and sometimes
contradictory picture of the ancient city even at its peak in the
sixth century BC.[5]

5.1 Excavation and research
5.2
IraqIraq government
5.3 US and Polish occupation
5.4 Present day

6 Cultural importance

6.1 Biblical narrative

7 See also
8 Notes
9 References

9.1 Sources
9.2 Further reading

10 External links

Name[edit]

Look up 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The English
BabylonBabylon comes from Greek Babylṓn (Βαβυλών), a
transliteration of the
AkkadianAkkadian Bābilim.[6][not in citation given]
Archibald Sayce, writing in the 1870s, considered "Bab-ilu" or
"Bab-ili" to be the translation of an earlier Sumerian (formerly
thought to be in the obsolete "Turanian" language-family) name
"Ca-dimirra", meaning "gate of god",[7][8] based on the characters
KAN4 DIĜIR.RAKI (corresponding to the Sumerian phrase kan diĝirak
"god's gate") or perhaps based on other characters.[9]
According to Professor Dietz-Otto Edzard, the city was originally
called Babilla, but by the time of the Third Dynasty of Ur, through a
process of etymological speculation, had become Bāb-ili(m) meaning
"gate of god" or "god's gate"[10] (Bab-Il). The "gate of god"
translation is increasingly viewed as a folk etymology to explain an
unknown original non-Semitic placename.[11] Linguist I.J. Gelb
suggested in 1955 that Babil/Babilla is the basis of the city name, of
unknown meaning and origin, as there were other similarly-named places
in Sumer, and there are no other examples of Sumerian place-names
being replaced with
AkkadianAkkadian translations. He deduced that it later
transformed into
AkkadianAkkadian Bāb-ili(m), and that the Sumerian
Ka-dingirra was a later translation of that, rather than
vice-versa.[12][13]
Joan Oates states in her book
BabylonBabylon that the
rendering Gateway of the gods is no longer accepted by modern
scholars.[citation needed]
In the Bible, the name appears as Babel (Hebrew: בָּבֶל‎,
Bavel, Tib. בָּבֶל, Bāvel; Classical Syriac: ܒܒܠ‎,
Bāwēl), interpreted in the Hebrew Scriptures'
Book of GenesisBook of Genesis to
mean "confusion",[14] from the verb bilbél (בלבל, "to
confuse").[15] The modern English verb, to "babble", or to speak
meaningless words, is popularly thought to derive from this name, but
there is no direct connection.[16]
Ancient records in some situations use
BabylonBabylon as a name for other
cities, including cities like
BorsippaBorsippa within Babylon's sphere of
influence, and
NinevehNineveh for a short period after the Assyrian sack of
Babylon.[17][18]

The remains of the city are in present-day Hillah,[8] Babil
Governorate, Iraq, about 85 kilometers (53 mi) south of Baghdad,
comprising a large tell of broken mud-brick buildings and debris. The
site at
BabylonBabylon consists of a number of mounds covering an area of
about 2 by 1 kilometer (1.24 mi × 0.62 mi), oriented
north to south,[citation needed] along the
EuphratesEuphrates to the west.
Originally, the river roughly bisected the city, but the course of the
river has since shifted so that most of the remains of the former
western part of the city are now inundated. Some portions of the city
wall to the west of the river also remain.
Only a small portion of the ancient city (3% of the area within the
inner walls; 1.5% of the area within the outer walls; 0.1% at the
depth of Middle and Old Babylon) has been excavated.[19] Known remains
include:

Kasr – also called Palace or Castle, it is the location of the
Neo-BabylonianNeo-Babylonian ziggurat
EtemenankiEtemenanki and lies in the center of the
site.[citation needed]
Amran Ibn Ali – the highest of the mounds at 25 meters, to
the south. It is the site of Esagila, a temple of
MardukMarduk which also
contained shrines to Ea and Nabu.[citation needed]
Homera – a reddish-colored mound on the west side. Most of the
HellenisticHellenistic remains are here.[citation needed]
Babil – a mound about 22 meters high at the northern end
of the site. Its bricks have been subject to looting since ancient
times. It held a palace built by Nebuchadnezzar.[citation needed]

Archaeologists have recovered few artifacts predating the
Neo-BabylonianNeo-Babylonian period. The water table in the region has risen greatly
over the centuries, and artifacts from the time before the
Neo-Babylonian EmpireNeo-Babylonian Empire are unavailable to current standard
archaeological methods. Additionally, the Neo-Babylonians conducted
significant rebuilding projects in the city, which destroyed or
obscured much of the earlier record.
BabylonBabylon was pillaged numerous
times after revolting against foreign rule, most notably by the
HittitesHittites and
ElamitesElamites in the 2nd millennium, then by the Neo-Assyrian
Empire and the
AchaemenidAchaemenid Empire in the 1st millennium. Much of the
western half of the city is now beneath the river, and other parts of
the site have been mined for commercial building materials.
Only the Koldewey expedition recovered artifacts from the Old
Babylonian period. These included 967 clay tablets, stored in private
houses, with Sumerian literature and lexical documents.[19]
Nearby ancient settlements are Kish, Borsippa, Dilbat, and Kutha.
MaradMarad and
SipparSippar were 60 km in either direction along the
Euphrates.[19]
Sources[edit]

Historical knowledge of early
BabylonBabylon must be pieced together from
epigraphic remains found elsewhere, such as at Uruk, Nippur, and
Haradum.
Information on the
Neo-BabylonianNeo-Babylonian city is available from
archaeological excavations and from classical sources.
BabylonBabylon was
described, perhaps even visited, by a number of classical historians
including Ctesias, Herodotus, Quintus Curtius Rufus, Strabo, and
Cleitarchus. These reports are of variable accuracy and some of the
content was politically motivated, but these still provide useful
information.[20]
Early references[edit]
References to the city of
BabylonBabylon can be found in
AkkadianAkkadian and
Sumerian literature from the late third millennium BC. One of the
earliest is a tablet describing the
AkkadianAkkadian king Šar-kali-šarri
laying the foundations in
BabylonBabylon of new temples for Annūnı̄tum and
Ilaba.
BabylonBabylon also appears in the administrative records of the Third
Dynasty of Ur, which collected in-kind tax payments and appointed an
ensi as local governor.[13][21]
The so-called Weidner Chronicle (also known as ABC 19) states that
Sargon of AkkadSargon of Akkad (c. 23d century BC in the short chronology) had
built
BabylonBabylon "in front of Akkad" (ABC 19:51). A later chronicle
states that Sargon "dug up the dirt of the pit of Babylon, and made a
counterpart of
BabylonBabylon next to Akkad". (ABC 20:18–19). Van de
Mieroop has suggested that those sources may refer to the much later
Assyrian king
Sargon IISargon II of the
Neo-Assyrian EmpireNeo-Assyrian Empire rather than Sargon
of Akkad.[18]
The Book of Genesis, chapter 10, claims that king
NimrodNimrod founded
Babel, Uruk, and Akkad.
Classical dating[edit]
Ctesias, quoted by
Diodorus SiculusDiodorus Siculus and in George Syncellus's
Chronographia, claimed to have access to manuscripts from Babylonian
archives, which date the founding of
BabylonBabylon to 2286 BC, under
the reign of its first king, Belus.[22] A similar figure is found in
the writings of Berossus, who according to Pliny,[23] stated that
astronomical observations commenced at
BabylonBabylon 490 years before
the Greek era of Phoroneus, indicating 2243 BC. Stephanus of
Byzantium wrote that
BabylonBabylon was built 1002 years before the date
given by
Hellanicus of LesbosHellanicus of Lesbos for the siege of Troy (1229 BC),
which would date Babylon's foundation to 2231 BC.[24] All of
these dates place Babylon's foundation in the 23rd century BC;
however, cuneiform records have not been found to correspond with
these classical (post-cuneiform) accounts.
History[edit]

The Queen of the Night relief. The figure could be an aspect of the
goddess Ishtar, Babylonian goddess of sex and love.

By around the 19th century BC, much of southern
MesopotamiaMesopotamia was
occupied by Amorites, nomadic tribes from the northern
LevantLevant who were
Northwest SemiticNorthwest Semitic speakers, unlike the native Akkadians of southern
MesopotamiaMesopotamia and Assyria, who spoke East Semitic. The
AmoritesAmorites at first
did not practice agriculture like more advanced Mesopotamians,
preferring a semi-nomadic lifestyle, herding sheep. Over time, Amorite
grain merchants rose to prominence and established their own
independent dynasties in several south Mesopotamian city-states, most
notably Isin, Larsa, Eshnunna, Lagash, and later, founding
BabylonBabylon as
a state.
Old Babylonian period[edit]

Map showing the Babylonian territory upon Hammurabi's ascension in
1792 BC and upon his death in 1750 BC

Old Babylonian cylinder seal, hematite. This seal was probably made in
a workshop at
SipparSippar (about 40 miles north of
BabylonBabylon on the map
above) either during, or shortly before, the reign of Hammurabi.[25]
It depicts the king making an animal offering to the Sun god Shamash.

Linescan camera image of the cylinder seal above (reversed to resemble
an impression).

According to a Babylonian date list, Amorite[a] rule in
BabylonBabylon began
(c. 19th or 18th century BC) with a chieftain named Sumu-abum, who
declared independence from the neighboring city-state of Kazallu.
Sumu-la-El, whose dates may be concurrent with those of Sumu-abum, is
usually given as the progenitor of the First Babylonian Dynasty. Both
are credited with building the walls of Babylon. In any case, the
records describe Sumu-la-El’s military successes establishing a
regional sphere of influence for Babylon.[26]
BabylonBabylon was initially a minor city-state, and controlled little
surrounding territory; its first four
AmoriteAmorite rulers did not assume
the title of king. The older and more powerful states of Assyria,
Elam,
IsinIsin and
LarsaLarsa overshadowed
BabylonBabylon until it became the capital
of Hammurabi's short lived empire about a century later.
HammurabiHammurabi (r.
1792–1750 BC) is famous for codifying the laws of Babylonia
into the Code of Hammurabi. He conquered all of the cities and city
states of southern Mesopotamia, including Isin, Larsa, Ur, Uruk,
Nippur, Lagash, Eridu, Kish, Adab, Eshnunna, Akshak, Akkad, Shuruppak,
Bad-tibira,
SipparSippar and Girsu, coalescing them into one kingdom, ruled
from Babylon.
HammurabiHammurabi also invaded and conquered
ElamElam to the east,
and the kingdoms of Mari and
EblaEbla to the north west. After a
protracted struggle with the powerful Assyrian king
Ishme-DaganIshme-Dagan of the
Old Assyrian Empire, he forced his successor to pay tribute late in
his reign, spreading Babylonian power to Assyria's Hattian and Hurrian
colonies in Asia Minor.
After the reign of Hammurabi, the whole of southern
MesopotamiaMesopotamia came
to be known as Babylonia, whereas the north had already coalesced
centuries before into Assyria. From this time,
BabylonBabylon supplanted
NippurNippur and
EriduEridu as the major religious centers of southern
Mesopotamia. Hammurabi's empire destabilized after his death.
Assyrians defeated and drove out the Babylonians and Amorites. The far
south of
MesopotamiaMesopotamia broke away, forming the native Sealand Dynasty,
and the
ElamitesElamites appropriated territory in eastern Mesopotamia. The
AmoriteAmorite dynasty remained in power in Babylon, which again became a
small city state.
Texts from Old
BabylonBabylon often include references to Shamash, the
sun-god of Sippar, treated as a supreme deity, and Marduk, considered
as his son.
MardukMarduk was later elevated to a higher status and Shamash
lowered, perhaps reflecting Babylon’s rising political power[13]
Middle Babylon[edit]
In 1595 BC[b] the city was overthrown by the
Hittite EmpireHittite Empire from
Asia Minor. Thereafter,
KassitesKassites from the
Zagros MountainsZagros Mountains of north
western
Ancient IranAncient Iran captured Babylon, ushering in a dynasty that
lasted for 435 years, until 1160 BC. The city was renamed
Karanduniash during this period. Kassite
BabylonBabylon eventually became
subject to the
Middle Assyrian EmpireMiddle Assyrian Empire (1365–1053 BC) to the north,
and
ElamElam to the east, with both powers vying for control of the city.
The Assyrian king
Tukulti-Ninurta ITukulti-Ninurta I took the throne of
BabylonBabylon in
1235 BC.
By 1155 BC, after continued attacks and annexing of territory by
the Assyrians and Elamites, the
KassitesKassites were deposed in Babylon. An
AkkadianAkkadian south Mesopotamian dynasty then ruled for the first time.
However,
BabylonBabylon remained weak and subject to domination by Assyria.
Its ineffectual native kings were unable to prevent new waves of
foreign West Semitic settlers from the deserts of the Levant,
including the
ArameansArameans and
Suteans in the 11th century BC, and finally
the Chaldeans in the 9th century BC, entering and appropriating areas
of
BabyloniaBabylonia for themselves. The
ArameansArameans briefly ruled in Babylon
during the late 11th century BC.
Assyrian period[edit]

During the rule of the
Neo-Assyrian EmpireNeo-Assyrian Empire (911–609 BC),
BabyloniaBabylonia was under constant Assyrian domination or direct control.
During the reign of
SennacheribSennacherib of Assyria,
BabyloniaBabylonia was in a
constant state of revolt, led by a chieftain named Merodach-Baladan,
in alliance with the Elamites, and suppressed only by the complete
destruction of the city of Babylon. In 689 BC, its walls, temples
and palaces were razed, and the rubble was thrown into the Arakhtu,
the sea bordering the earlier
BabylonBabylon on the south. Destruction of the
religious center shocked many, and the subsequent murder of
SennacheribSennacherib by two of his own sons while praying to the god Nisroch
was considered an act of atonement. Consequently, his successor
EsarhaddonEsarhaddon hastened to rebuild the old city and make it his residence
during part of the year. After his death,
BabyloniaBabylonia was governed by
his elder son, the Assyrian prince Shamash-shum-ukin, who eventually
started a civil war in 652 BC against his own brother,
Ashurbanipal, who ruled in Nineveh.
Shamash-shum-ukinShamash-shum-ukin enlisted the
help of other peoples subject to Assyria, including Elam, Persia,
Chaldeans and
Suteans of southern Mesopotamia, and the
CanaanitesCanaanites and
ArabsArabs dwelling in the deserts south of Mesopotamia.
Once again,
BabylonBabylon was besieged by the Assyrians, starved into
surrender and its allies were defeated.
AshurbanipalAshurbanipal celebrated a
"service of reconciliation", but did not venture to "take the hands"
of Bel. An Assyrian governor named
Kandalanu was appointed as ruler of
the city.
AshurbanipalAshurbanipal did collect texts from
BabylonBabylon for inclusion in
his extensive library at Ninevah.[19]
After the death of Ashurbanipal, the Assyrian empire destabilized due
to a series of internal civil wars throughout the reigns of Assyrian
kings Ashur-etil-ilani,
Sin-shumu-lishir and Sinsharishkun. Eventually
Babylon, like many other parts of the near east, took advantage of the
anarchy within
AssyriaAssyria to free itself from Assyrian rule. In the
subsequent overthrow of the Assyrian Empire by an alliance of peoples,
the Babylonians saw another example of divine vengeance.[27]
Neo-BabylonianNeo-Babylonian Empire[edit]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help
improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources.
Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2008) (Learn
how and when to remove this template message)

A reconstruction of the blue-tiled
IshtarIshtar Gate which was the northern
entrance to Babylon. It was named for the goddess of love and war.
Bulls and dragons, symbols of the god Marduk, decorated the gate.

Under Nabopolassar, a previously unknown Chaldean chieftain, Babylon
escaped Assyrian rule, and in an alliance with Cyaxares, king of the
MedesMedes and Persians together with the
ScythiansScythians and Cimmerians, finally
destroyed the Assyrian Empire between 612 BC and 605 BC.
BabylonBabylon thus
became the capital of the
Neo-BabylonianNeo-Babylonian (sometimes and possibly
erroneously called the Chaldean) Empire.[29][30][31]
With the recovery of Babylonian independence, a new era of
architectural activity ensued, particularly during the reign of his
son
Nebuchadnezzar IINebuchadnezzar II (604–561 BC).[32]
NebuchadnezzarNebuchadnezzar ordered
the complete reconstruction of the imperial grounds, including the
EtemenankiEtemenanki ziggurat, and the construction of the
IshtarIshtar Gate—the
most prominent of eight gates around Babylon. A reconstruction of the
IshtarIshtar Gate is located in the
Pergamon MuseumPergamon Museum in Berlin.
NebuchadnezzarNebuchadnezzar is also credited with the construction of the Hanging
Gardens of Babylon—one of the seven wonders of the ancient
world—said to have been built for his homesick wife Amyitis. Whether
the gardens actually existed is a matter of dispute. German
archaeologist
Robert KoldeweyRobert Koldewey speculated that he had discovered its
foundations, but many historians disagree about the location.
Stephanie DalleyStephanie Dalley has argued that the hanging gardens were actually
located in the Assyrian capital, Nineveh.[33]
Nebuchandnezzar is also notoriously associated with the Babylonian
exile of the Jews, the result of an imperial technique of
pacification, used also by the Assyrians, in which ethnic groups in
conquered areas were deported en masse to the capital.[34]
Chaldean rule of
BabylonBabylon did not last long; it is not clear whether
Neriglissar and Labashi-
MardukMarduk were Chaldeans or native Babylonians,
and the last ruler
NabonidusNabonidus (556–539 BC) and his co-regent son
BelshazzarBelshazzar were Assyrians from Harran.[citation needed]
Persian conquest[edit]
In 539 BC, the
Neo-Babylonian EmpireNeo-Babylonian Empire fell to Cyrus the Great,
king of Persia, with a military engagement known as the Battle of
Opis. Babylon's walls were considered impenetrable. The only way into
the city was through one of its many gates or through the Euphrates
River. Metal grates were installed underwater, allowing the river to
flow through the city walls while preventing intrusion. The Persians
devised a plan to enter the city via the river. During a Babylonian
national feast, Cyrus' troops diverted the
EuphratesEuphrates River upstream,
allowing Cyrus' soldiers to enter the city through the lowered water.
The Persian army conquered the outlying areas of the city while the
majority of Babylonians at the city center were unaware of the breach.
The account was elaborated upon by Herodotus[35][20] and is also
mentioned in parts of the Hebrew Bible.[36][37]
(
HerodotusHerodotus also described a moat, an enormously tall and broad wall
cemented with bitumen and with buildings on top, and a hundred gates
to the city. He also writes that the Babylonians wear turbans and
perfume and bury their dead in honey, that they practice ritual
prostitution, and that three tribes among them eat nothing but fish.
The hundred gates can be considered a reference to Homer, and
following the pronouncement of
Archibald Henry SayceArchibald Henry Sayce in 1883,
Herodotus’s account of
BabylonBabylon has largely been considered to
represent Greek folklore rather than an authentic voyage to Babylon.
Dalley and others have recently suggested taking Herodotus’s account
seriously again.)[35][38]
According to 2 Chronicles 36 of the Hebrew Bible, Cyrus later issued a
decree permitting captive people, including the Jews, to return to
their own lands. Text found on the
Cyrus CylinderCyrus Cylinder has traditionally
been seen by biblical scholars as corroborative evidence of this
policy, although the interpretation is disputed because the text only
identifies Mesopotamian sanctuaries but makes no mention of Jews,
Jerusalem, or Judea.
Under Cyrus and the subsequent Persian king Darius I,
BabylonBabylon became
the capital city of the 9th Satrapy (
BabyloniaBabylonia in the south and Athura
in the north), as well as a center of learning and scientific
advancement. In
AchaemenidAchaemenid Persia, the ancient Babylonian arts of
astronomy and mathematics were revitalized, and Babylonian scholars
completed maps of constellations. The city became the administrative
capital of the
Persian EmpirePersian Empire and remained prominent for over two
centuries. Many important archaeological discoveries have been made
that can provide a better understanding of that era.[39][40]
The early Persian kings had attempted to maintain the religious
ceremonies of Marduk, but by the reign of Darius III, over-taxation
and the strain of numerous wars led to a deterioration of Babylon's
main shrines and canals, and the destabilization of the surrounding
region. There were numerous attempts at rebellion and in 522 BC
(
NebuchadnezzarNebuchadnezzar III), 521 BC (
NebuchadnezzarNebuchadnezzar IV) and 482 BC
(Bel-shimani and Shamash-eriba) native Babylonian kings briefly
regained independence. However these revolts were quickly repressed
and
BabylonBabylon remained under Persian rule for two centuries, until
Alexander the Great's entry in 331 BC.
HellenisticHellenistic period[edit]

"Entry of Alexander into Babylon", a 1665 painting by Charles LeBrun,
depicts Alexander the Great's uncontested entry into the city of
Babylon, envisioned with pre-existing
HellenisticHellenistic architecture.

In October of 331 BC, Darius III, the last
AchaemenidAchaemenid king of the
Persian Empire, was defeated by the forces of the Ancient Macedonian
Greek ruler
Alexander the GreatAlexander the Great at the Battle of Gaugamela. A native
account of this invasion notes a ruling by Alexander not to enter the
homes of its inhabitants.[41]
Under Alexander,
BabylonBabylon again flourished as a center of learning and
commerce. However, following Alexander's death in 323 BC in the
palace of Nebuchadnezzar, his empire was divided amongst his generals,
the Diadochi, and decades of fighting soon began. The constant turmoil
virtually emptied the city of Babylon. A tablet dated 275 BC
states that the inhabitants of
BabylonBabylon were transported to Seleucia,
where a palace and a temple (Esagila) were built. With this
deportation,
BabylonBabylon became insignificant as a city, although more
than a century later, sacrifices were still performed in its old
sanctuary.[42]
Renewed Persian rule[edit]
Main article:
BabyloniaBabylonia § Persian_Babylonia
Under the Parthian and Sassanid Empires,
BabylonBabylon (like Assyria) became
a province of these Persian Empires for nine centuries, until after
AD 650. It maintained its own culture and people, who spoke
varieties of Aramaic, and who continued to refer to their homeland as
Babylon. Examples of their culture are found in the Babylonian Talmud,
the
GnosticGnostic Mandaean religion, Eastern Rite
ChristianityChristianity and the
religion of the prophet Mani.
ChristianityChristianity was introduced to
MesopotamiaMesopotamia in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD, and
BabylonBabylon was the seat
of a Bishop of the
Church of the EastChurch of the East until well after the
Arab/Islamic conquest.
MuslimMuslim conquest[edit]
Main article:
MuslimMuslim conquest of Persia
In the mid-7th century,
MesopotamiaMesopotamia was invaded and settled by the
expanding
MuslimMuslim Empire, and a period of
IslamizationIslamization followed.
BabylonBabylon was dissolved as a province and
AramaicAramaic and Church of the East
ChristianityChristianity eventually became marginalized. Ibn Hauqal mentions a
small village called Babel in the tenth century; subsequent travelers
describe only ruins.[43]
BabylonBabylon is mentioned in medieval Arabic writings as a source of
bricks,[19] said to have been used in cities from
BaghdadBaghdad to
Basra.[44]
European travelers in many cases could not discover the city's
location, or mistook
FallujahFallujah for it. Twelfth-century traveler
Benjamin of TudelaBenjamin of Tudela mentions
BabylonBabylon but it’s not clear if he really
went there. Others referred to
BaghdadBaghdad as
BabylonBabylon or New
BabylonBabylon and
described various structures encountered in the region as the Tower of
Babel.[45]
Pietro della VallePietro della Valle found the ancient site in the
seventeenth century and noted the existence of both baked and dried
mudbricks cemented with bitumen.[44]
Modern era[edit]

From the accounts of modern travellers, I had expected to have found
on the site of
BabylonBabylon more, and less, than I actually did. Less,
because I could have formed no conception of the prodigious extent of
the whole ruins, or of the size, solidity, and perfect state, of some
of the parts of them; and more, because I thought that I should have
distinguished some traces, however imperfect, of many of the principle
structures of Babylon. I imagined, I should have said: “Here were
the walls, and such must have been the extent of the area. There stood
the palace, and this most assuredly was the tower of Belus.” – I
was completely deceived: instead of a few insulated mounds, I found
the whole face of the country covered with vestiges of building, in
some places consisting of brick walls surprisingly fresh, in others
merely of a vast succession of mounds of rubbish of such indeterminate
figures, variety and extent, as to involve the person who should have
formed any theory in inextricable confusion.

The eighteenth century saw an increasing flow of travelers to Babylon,
including
Carsten NiebuhrCarsten Niebuhr and Pierre-Joseph de Beauchamp, as well as
measurements of its latitude. Beauchamp’s memoir, published in
English translation in 1792, provoked the British East India Company
to direct its agents in
BaghdadBaghdad and Basra to acquire Mesopotamian
relics for shipment to London.[47]
Excavation and research[edit]
Claudius Rich, working for the East India Company in Baghdad,
excavated
BabylonBabylon in 1811–12 and again in 1817.[48][49] Robert
Mignan excavated at the site briefly in 1827.[50] William Loftus
visited there in 1849.[51]
Austen Henry LayardAusten Henry Layard made some soundings during a brief visit in 1850
before abandoning the site.[52]
Fulgence Fresnel and Julius Oppert
heavily excavated
BabylonBabylon from 1852 to 1854. However, many of the
fruits of their work was lost when a raft containing over forty crates
of artifacts sank into the Tigris river.[53][54]

Original tiles of the processional street. Ancient Babylon,
Mesopotamia, Iraq.

Sir Henry Rawlinson, 1st BaronetSir Henry Rawlinson, 1st Baronet and George Smith worked there briefly
in 1854. The next excavation was conducted by
Hormuzd RassamHormuzd Rassam on behalf
of the British Museum. Work began in 1879, continuing until 1882, and
was prompted by widespread looting of the site. Using industrial scale
digging in search of artifacts, Rassam recovered a large quantity of
cuneiform tablets and other finds. The zealous excavation methods,
common at the time, caused significant damage to the archaeological
context.[55][56] Many tablets had appeared on the market in 1876
before Rassam's excavation began.[19]

Mušḫuššu (sirrush) and aurochs on either side of the processional
street. Ancient Babylon, Mesopotamia, Iraq

A team from the German Oriental Society led by Robert Koldewey
conducted the first scientific archaeological excavations at Babylon.
The work was conducted daily from 1899 until 1917. Primary efforts of
the dig involved the temple of
MardukMarduk and the processional way leading
up to it, as well as the city wall.[57][58][59][60][61][62] Artifacts
including pieces of the
IshtarIshtar Gate and hundreds of recovered tablets
were sent back to Germany, where Koldewey's colleague Walter Andrae
reconstructed them into displays at Vorderasiatisches Museum
Berlin.,[63][64] The German archaeologists fled before oncoming
British troops in 1917 and again many objects went missing in the
following years.[19]
Further work by the
German Archaeological InstituteGerman Archaeological Institute was conducted by
Heinrich J. Lenzen in 1956 and Hansjörg Schmid in 1962. Lenzen's work
dealt primarily with the
HellenisticHellenistic theatre, and Schmid focused on
the temple ziggurat Etemenanki.[65]
The site was excavated in 1974 on behalf of the Turin Centre for
Archaeological Research and Excavations in the Middle East and Asia
and the Iraqi-Italian Institute of Archaeological Sciences.[66][67]
The focus was on clearing up issues raised by re-examination of the
old German data. Additional work in 1987–1989 concentrated on the
area surrounding the Ishara and
NinurtaNinurta temples in the Shu-Anna
city-quarter of Babylon.[68][69]
During the restoration efforts in Babylon, the Iraqi State
Organization for Antiquities and Heritage excavation and clearing, but
wider publication of these archaeological activities has been
limited.[70][71] Indeed, most of the known tablets from all modern
excavation remain unpublished.[19]
IraqIraq government[edit]
The site of
BabylonBabylon has been a cultural asset to
IraqIraq since the
creation of the modern Iraqi government in 1920. Babylonian images
periodically appear on Iraqi postcards and stamps. In the 1960s a
replica of the
IshtarIshtar gate and a reconstruction of Ninmakh temple were
built on site.[72]
On 14 February 1978, the
BaathistBaathist government of
IraqIraq under Saddam
Hussein began the "Archaeological Restoration of
BabylonBabylon Project":
reconstructing features of the ancient city atop its ruins. These
features included the Southern Palace of Nebuchandnezzar, with 250
rooms, five courtyards, and a 30-meter entrance arch. The project also
reinforced the Processional Way, the Lion of Babylon, and an
amphitheater constructed in the city's
HellenisticHellenistic era. In 1982 the
government minted a set of seven coins displaying iconic features of
Babylon. A
BabylonBabylon International Festival was held in September 1987,
and annually thereafter until 2002 (excepting 1990 and 1991), to
showcase this work. Proposed reconstruction of the Hanging Gardens and
the great ziggurat never took place.[73][72][74]
Hussein installed a portrait of himself and
NebuchadnezzarNebuchadnezzar at the
entrance to the ruins and inscribed his name on many of the bricks, in
imitation of Nebuchadnezzar. One frequent inscription reads: "This was
built by Saddam Hussein, son of Nebuchadnezzar, to glorify Iraq".
These bricks became sought after as collectors' items after Hussein's
downfall.[75] Similar projects were conducted at Nineveh, Nimrud,
AssurAssur and Hatra, to demonstrate the magnificence of Arab
achievement.[76]
When the 1991
Gulf WarGulf War ended, Hussein wanted to build a modern palace
called Saddam Hill over some of the old ruins, in the pyramidal style
of a ziggurat. In 2003, he intended the construction of a cable car
line over Babylon, but plans were halted by the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
US and Polish occupation[edit]

Following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the area around
BabylonBabylon came
under the control of US troops, before being handed over to Polish
forces in September 2003.[77] US forces under the command of General
James T. ConwayJames T. Conway of the
I Marine Expeditionary ForceI Marine Expeditionary Force were criticized
for building the military base "Camp Alpha", with a helipad and other
facilities on ancient Babylonian ruins during the
IraqIraq War. US forces
have occupied the site for some time and have caused irreparable
damage to the archaeological record. In a report of the British
Museum's Near East department, Dr. John Curtis described how parts of
the archaeological site were levelled to create a landing area for
helicopters, and parking lots for heavy vehicles. Curtis wrote of the
occupation forces:

They caused substantial damage to the
IshtarIshtar Gate, one of the most
famous monuments from antiquity [...] US military vehicles crushed
2,600-year-old brick pavements, archaeological fragments were
scattered across the site, more than 12 trenches were driven into
ancient deposits and military earth-moving projects contaminated the
site for future generations of scientists.[78]

A US Military spokesman claimed that engineering operations were
discussed with the "head of the
BabylonBabylon museum".[79] The head of the
Iraqi State Board for Heritage and Antiquities, Donny George, said
that the "mess will take decades to sort out" and criticised Polish
troops for causing "terrible damage" to the site.[80][81] Poland
resolved in 2004 to place the city under
IraqIraq control, and
commissioned a report titled Report Concerning the Condition of the
Preservation of the
BabylonBabylon Archaeological Site, which it presented at
a meeting on 11–13 December 2004.[73] In 2005 the site was handed
over to the Iraqi Ministry of Culture.[77]
In April 2006, Colonel John Coleman, former Chief of Staff for the 1st
Marine Expeditionary Force, offered to issue an apology for the damage
done by military personnel under his command. However, he also claimed
that the US presence had deterred far greater damage by other
looters.[82] An article published in April 2006 stated that UN
officials and Iraqi leaders have plans to restore Babylon, making it
into a cultural center.[83][84]
Two museums and a library, containing replicas of artifacts and local
maps and reports, were raided and destroyed.[85]
Present day[edit]
In May 2009, the provincial government of Babil reopened the site to
tourists, but not many have come. An oil pipeline runs through an
outer wall of the city.[86][87]

Panoramic view of ruins in
BabylonBabylon photographed in 2005 during a tour
for U.S. soldiers.

"The Walls of
BabylonBabylon and the Temple of Bel (Or Babel)", by
19th-century illustrator William Simpson – influenced by early
archaeological investigations.

Before modern archaeological excavations in Mesopotamia, the
appearance of
BabylonBabylon was largely a mystery, and typically envisioned
by Western artists as a hybrid between ancient Egyptian, classical
Greek, and contemporary Ottoman culture.[88]
Due to Babylon's historical significance as well as references to it
in the Bible, the word "Babylon" in various languages has acquired a
generic meaning of a large, bustling diverse city. Examples include:

BabylonBabylon is used in reggae music as a concept in the Rastafari belief
system, denoting the materialistic capitalist world.
Freemasonry, which has its own versions of biblical legends,
classically considered
BabylonBabylon as its birthplace and a haven for
science and knowledge.[89]
BabylonBabylon 5 – a science fiction series about a multi-racial
futuristic space station.
Babylon A.D.Babylon A.D. takes place in New York City, decades in the future.
BabilonasBabilonas (Lithuanian name for "Babylon") – a real estate
development in Lithuania.

Biblical narrative[edit]
In Genesis 10:10, Babel (Babylon) is described as founded by Nimrod
along with Uruk, Akkad and perhaps Calneh—all of them in Shinar
("Calneh" is now sometimes translated not as a proper name but as the
phrase "all of them"). Another story is given in Genesis 11, which
describes a united human race, speaking one language, migrating to
ShinarShinar to establish a city and tower—the Tower of Babel. God halts
construction of the tower by scattering humanity across the earth and
confusing their communication so they are unable to understand each
other in the same language.
BabylonBabylon appears throughout the Hebrew Bible, including several
prophecies and in descriptions of the destruction of Jerusalem and
subsequent Babylonian captivity. Consequently, in
JewishJewish tradition,
BabylonBabylon symbolizes an oppressor against which righteous believers must
struggle[citation needed]. In Christianity,
BabylonBabylon symbolizes
worldliness and evil.[90] Prophecies sometimes symbolically link the
kings of
BabylonBabylon with Lucifer. Nebuchadnezzar, sometimes conflated
with Nabonidus, appears as the foremost ruler in this narrative.[91]
The Revelation of St. John in the Christian
BibleBible refers to Babylon
many centuries after it ceased to be a major political center. The
city is personified by the “Whore of Babylon”, riding on a scarlet
beast with seven heads and ten horns, and drunk on the blood of the
righteous. Some scholars of apocalyptic literature believe this New
Testament “Babylon” to be a dysphemism for the Roman Empire.[92]
See also[edit]

Cities of the ancient Near East
Jehoiachin's Rations Tablets
List of Kings of Babylon
Tomb of Daniel